Floribunda Rose 'Gene Boerner'

In my opinion, the best all-around rose I've grown...period. It's extremely disease resistant, very heat tolerant, it blooms constantly,...Read More the flowers have a classic rose shape, they last forever in a vase...it's just an awesome rose. The only negative is that it isn't fragrant, but if you don't mind that this is my #1 recommendation for beginners and experts alike.

You can also typically find this plant at big-box stores for a song in the spring. If you see one, snap it up asap!

I found this rose as a bagged $6 bargain. I have over 60 different varieties of roses and this is by far my hardest working bloomer. Th...Read Moree blooms are in sprays and nearly constant, all over the entire bush. The color is a medium pink and while the individual roses are not stunning on their own, the effect of the full sprays covering the bush is wonderful to see. This rose lived happily through the last two winters of arctic freezes in my zone 5 garden with no protection at all. This is a great rose for a beginner; and experienced growers would love the ease of care and bursts of color from this hardy workhorse. Gene Boerner rose should be more widely offered.

The Gene Boerner is probably the best overall shrub rose I've ever planted, at least for my climate (Austin, TX).

First, i...Read Moret's very disease resistant. It stays strong and healthy when nearly all my other rose bushes are getting fungus and blackspot. The only bushes the really compare are the highly-resistant Knockouts I have, but they don't look as good, since the Gene Boerner has thicker, greener, healthier-looking leaves and an equal number of blooms.

Secondly, it handles the weather well. It keeps healthy growth even in the hottest weather and blooms continually from summer to frost. Of all my roses, the Gene Boerner did the best in Texas's record-setting, scorcher summer of 2011. It also does well in the winter. Mine keeps nearly all of its bright-green leaves all winter, even when the Knockouts are getting drab and rust-colored from the cold. It also blooms well into December, sometimes in January, and things really start picking up from February onwards.

Finally, the growth is ideal for a shrub rose, especially along the fence, where mine is planted. In less than two years it has grown to about 5 feet tall and maybe four feet wide. The growth on the Gene Boerner is even and full and very round, whereas many of my other bushes produce thick shoots or grow heavier on one side or another. The growth is sturdy (i.e. doesn't droop) but not overly thick. Without very much effort at all, it has grown into a perfectly shaped hedge bush.

The only real downside is that the blooms are fairly small and scentless, and they don't last very long. Thankfully one need not wait very long for new blooms!

1969 All American Rose Selections winner

From Countrysideroses.com:
Class: Floribunda
Bloom: Medium pink ...Read More
Size: 4 ft. tall
Introduced: Boerner, 1968
A lovely classic pink floribunda. High-centered roses with slight fragrance are produced in abundance repeated throughout the season. Disease resistant is good. Zones 6-9.

Growquest.com: Gene Boerner floribunda rose is a pure pink beauty is a super-vigorous bush and offers color all season.
Height/Habit Medium-tall, Upright
Bloom Size- Medium, Full
Foliage- Medium green
Petal Count 35 - 40
Fragrance- Slight
Parentage- Ginger x (Ma Perkins x Garnette Supreme)
Hybridizer Boerner - 1969
Disease Resistance- Very Good
Uses- Border, Hedge, Landscape, Mass Planting